Photo-cell control for die sinking machines



May 20, 1941. T. F. BRAcKE'r 2,242,506

PHOTO-CELL CONTROLFOR DIE SINKING MACHINES v Filed July s1. 1937 14 Smeets-snm 1v May 20,1941. T. F. BRACKETT. 2,242,506

PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FR DIE SINKING MACHINES Filed July :51, 1937 l 14 snets-sheet'z 31a/0MM l l @ww #4% May 2o, -1941. f. F. BRACKETT 2,242,506

PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SINKING MACHINES Filed July 31, 1937 14 Sheets-Sheet 3 May 2 0, 1941..v r. F, BRAcK'rT 2,242,506

PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SINKING MACHINES Filed July :51, 19:57 14 sheets-sheet 4 May 20, 1941. T. F. BRACKET-r 2,242,506

PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SINKING MACHINES Filed July 5.1.2195? 14 sheets-sheet s May 2o, -1941. T E BRA'CKETT 2,242,506

PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SIKING MACHINES Filed July 5l, 1937 14 Sheets-Sheet 6 [if gmc/wkn i7@ 7 facE-Wf May 2O, 1.941. T. F. BRAcKErT 2,242,506

PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SINKING MACHINES Filed July 31, 1957 14 Sheets-Sheet 'T a @Y @P 45 2v# 2f z/o 555 /s me zza 220 222 .I 245 ,l 222 l 25g, 11,5 2,4/ l 21a f2 26a Va 22 0&2

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PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SINKING MACHINES Filed July 3l. 1937 14 Sheets-Sheet 8 May 20, 1941. T F BRACKTT 2,242,506 l PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR D LE SINKING MACHINES Filed July 3l, 1957 14 Sheets--Shee1'l 9 Mmm,

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IIHIHI `'May 20, 1941*. T. F. BRACKETT 2,242,506

PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SIKING MACHINES Filed July 31, 1937 14 Sheets-Sheet V10 gwen/bbc l l 72765/ .me''

May 20, 1941- T. F. BRACKETT 2,242,505

PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SIINKING MACHINES Filed July 3l, 1937 14 Sheecs-SheetI l1 awww/".

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PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SINKING MAcHINEsf Filed July :51, 1937 l 14 sheets-sheet 1s` lli May 20, 1941. T. F. BRACKET-r 2,242,506

PHTO-CELI.: CONTROL FOR DIE SINKING MACHINES Filed July s1, 1937 14-sheetssheet 1s 474 ff@ f ...526' 24%:

May 20, 1941. T. F. BRACKETT PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIEiSAINKING MACHINES Filed July 3l, 1937 14 Sheets-Sheet 14 29 y? .92 @g 666229 s# Sme/whom Patented May 20,v 1941 PHOTO-CELL CONTROL FOR DIE SINKING MACHINES Tracy F. Brackett, Detroit, Mich., assigner to General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a, corporation of Delaware Application July 31, 1937, Serial No. 156,644

(Cl. {l-13.5)

9 Claims.

This invention relates to contouring apparatus and more specifically to means for reproducing a given surface by controlling a movable cutting means from other means following a templet or model.

While my invention has numerous applications where surface reproduction is desired, it will here be specifically shown and described as applied to means for sinking or making dies for illustration only and it is to be understood that my invention should not be so limited.

In the particular application of die sinking, it it has long been a problem to provide apparatus that will accurately and swiftly reproduce a die from a model surface. This problem has increased greatly as the size of the dies used has increased, for now in the automobile industry, for example, whole portions of a car body are stamped from one die. The production of such dies is a long and arduous process and much has to be done by hand.

It is therefore the object of my invention to provide a device for accurately reproducing a given surface so that only a small amount of smoothing is necessary.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a duplicating device in which high cutting speeds are attainable to cut down the length of time heretofore necessary to reproduce a surface.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a duplicating device which may by simple adjustments produce either a similar surface to that of the model or a complementary surface thereto.

It is a still further object to provide such a machine as is substantially automatic in its operation.

With the above and other objects in View, the embodiments of my invention are disclosed in the following specification and claims and illus- Figure 4 is a vertical sectional viewtaken on une t-A of Figure 1. 5 l

'Figure 5 is a vertical sectional view taken on line 5 5 of Figure 1.

Figure 6 is.' an enlarged sectional detail of the shaft drive taken on line 6 6 of Figure 1.

Figure 7 is an enlarged detail view of one of the drive units taken on line l-'ll of Figure and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 8 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 8--8 of Figure 2.

Figure 9 is an-enlarged top plan view partly in section of one of the drive units taken partly on line 9-9 of Figure 7.

Figure 10 is a detail sectional view taken on line lll-I0 of Figure 7.

Figure 11 is an enlarged detail sectional view taken on line I I-Il of Figure 4.

Figure 12 is a detail sectional view taken on line IZ-IZ of Figure 11.

Figure 13 is a view similar toFigure 11 of the drive connection at the bottom partly in section, taken on line I3-l3 of Figure 4.

Figure 14 is a sectional view taken on line lI-ll of Figure 13.

Figure l5 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line |5I5 of Figure 2. v Figure 16 is a sectional view of a portion of the device taken on line lli-I6 of Figure 15.

Figure 17 is a sectional view'taken on line Il-ll of Figure 15.

Figure 18 is an enlarged detail sectional view taken on line l8-I8 of Figure 4.

Figure 19 is an enlarged view 'of the control head, parts being shown in section, taken substantially on line I9-l9 ofFigure 2.

Figure 20 is an enlarged sectional View taken on line 2li-20 of Figure 2. I

Figure 21 is a sectional view taken on line 2l--2I of Figure 19.

Figure 22 is a sectional view taken on line 22-22 of Figure 19.

Figure 23 is an enlarged sectional detail of the drive control taken on line 23-23 of Figure l.

Figure 24 is a sectional view taken on line 24-24 of Figure 23.

Figure 25 is an enlarged sectional detail of a connection taken on line 25-25 of Figure 2.

Figure 25a is a sectional view-taken on line 25a-25a of Figure 25.

Figure 26 is an enlarged sectional detail of the runway taken on line 26-.26 of Figure l.

Figure 27 is a detail section taken on line 21-21 of Figure 26.

Figure 28 is an enlargedl sectional detail of the upper runway taken on line 28-28 "of Figure v1.

Figure 29 is a sectional view taken on line 29-29 of Figure 28. f

Figure 30 is a schematic Wiring diagram of the electrical connections of the light control for the longitudinal drive device.

The embodiments of my inventionvshown herein may be generally described as including a stationary frame 2 roughly` of rectangular box form of cross members I6.

which supports a model or templet 4 and a work piece or die 6. Also carried on the frame 2 is a relatively movable frame 8 `which carries a tracing arm or pointer I and the other end of the frame 8 carries a cutter or router l2. The tracer is mounted adjacent the model surface and is adapted to be driventransversely or vertically over the surface by a suitable drive later to be described. As it follows the surface it is designed to move inwardly and outwardly with the contour of the model surface and in order to do so causes the movable frame 8 to move in a direction transverse to the surface of the model. 'I'his movement of the frame 8 of course carries with it the router or cutter I2 which is'in juxtaposition to the work piece or die 6 and therefore causes the cutter to reproduce the surface of the model on the work piece.

The frame 2 is constructed of two parallel spaced I beams I4 to which are bolted a plurality Also bolted to each of the I beams are a plurality of spaced vertical Posts I8 which carry suitable longitudinal and transverse members completing the stationary box frame and which support suitable apparatuslater to be described.

On one side of the frame are supported a pair of transverse rails 22 securedvtogether by spacing rods 24 and bolted to the frame 2. The purpose of these rails is to support a model such as 4 shown in dotted outline. Supported in the opposite end of the frame are work supporting panels 26, the lower edges of which are bolted at the extremities tothe I beams as shown at 28. The tops of the panels are secured to the top of the frame by pairs of long double threaded rods which pass through brackets 32 on the frame and brackets 34 on the panels and have opposed pairs ofnuts to secure them at each end. The position of the upper end of the panels may be varied by varying the length of the rods. Any major change in position will of course necessitate the removal of the lower brackets 28 to a different set of holes in the I beams. Therefore these panels may be supported at any desired position for the cutting process.

It should here be pointed out that the panels are on opposite sides of the cutter or router so that it .will cut either the inner or the outer surface as desired. Clamps such as 36 are provided on each panel to support the work piece thereon.

Within the stationary frame is a movable frame 8 which moves longitudinally therein. It is formed of a plurality of long parallel members 38 lying adjacent the longitudinal girders of the stationary frame. These members 38 have a T-shaped cross section and the lower ones on each side are supported on the stationary girders by a plurality of bcarings designated generally at 40 and best shown in detail in Figures 26 and 27. These bearings are formed of a block 42 secured to the upper surface ofthe girder by bolts 44.v

This block consists roughly of two substantially cylindrical Vertical portions extending upwardly from a base and a boss on one side of each, said bosses carrying a roller 46 adaptedto contact the lower edge of the T beam to support the same in rolling contact. cal portions there is a drilled opening 48 into which extends a stub shaft 58-52. On the stub shaft 52 is mounted a roller bearing assembly 54, the outer race surface of which contacts the side of the T beam to guide the same. The other stub shaft 58 has an offset end portion 56 upon which is rotatably mounted an outer ring and ball In each offthe vertical cylindri-s bearing assembly 58 adapted to bear against the other side of the vertical section of the T beam.

A pin 60 projects upwardly from the base of the block and has secured thereto one end of a spring 62 the opposite end of which is secured to one end of an arm 64 rigidly attached to the eccentric end of the shaft 56 out of contact with any rotatable means. The spring thus biases the roller against the side of the T beam and tends to keep the vertical section tightly between the two rollers and upon the roller 46. There are a plurality of these assemblies on each side of the stationary frame to support the lower edge of the movable frame. There are also provided set screws 66 in each block base to project against the upper surface of the I beam to allow leveling of the block for smooth running.

The upper longitudinal glrders 38 of the movable frame are slidably supported in a similar manner. There are provided on the upper stationary structure a plurality of roller assemblies designated generally at 68 and which are best shown in detail on Figures 28 and 29. The upper longitudinal frame member 10 has secured thereto by suitable bolts 12 the various cross members 20, the ends of the cross members extending out beyond the longitudinal members.

In the overhanging ends of 4the cross members 20 there are provided a pair of spaced openings 'I4 through which extend sleeves 16 having an enlarged boss 18 at the top which prevents the sleeve from passing entirely through the opening. Extending through the sleeves 16 are concentric bores in which are carried the stub shafts 82 to the lower extremities of which are eccentrically secured roller bearing assemblies 98 similar to those previously described and adapted to run against the opposite sides of the vertical portion of the upper T frame 38 which in this case is inverted as shown.

To the upper end of each shaft is applied a lever arm 84 secured thereto by a nut 86. The two opposed arms 84 are adjusted to lie parallel and vbetween their outer extremities extends a spring 88 which tends to rotate the two eccentric ysleeve assemblies toward each other and so forces the rollers on the lower extremities against the opposite faces of the fram'e member 38. The. ad-

completed form a second rectangular box frame within the first and which is easily movable longitudinally on rollers.

The apparatus thus far described has now set forth a movable box frame within a larger stationary box frame. The driving means for moving the movable frame will now be described. Referring specifically to Figure 1, a long threaded rod 98 may be seen in the lower left hand portion which lies parallel to the lower longitudinal frame members. One end of the rod is journalled at |80 in one of the lower transverse rails |92 which supports the rails 22 for holding the model. The opposite end of the rod is supported in a bracket |04 secured to the stationary frame adjacent the' lower end of the post I8. This support and drive connection is best shown on Figure 6.

lleaf spring |08 and cap ||0.

'I'he bracket |04 supports on one side a stationary sleeve bearing |06, said bearing being gear 4 by a pin |l6. This gear bears against' one side of the adjacent ball race and the other extend upwardly from the upper surface of the shelf. Also journalled in the supports |10 is a parallel stub shaft |12 which is driven from the stub shaft |68 by interrneshing of gears |14 and |16 secured to the two shafts |68 and |12 respectively. One end of the shaft |12 projects beyond side of the race bears against one end of the sleeve bearing. Upon the rod adjacent the other ball bearing is a tapered :telescoping clamping member H8, one portion |20 of which is rigidly pinned to the rod by pin |22 and the inner portion |24 threadedly engages the outer and may be adjustably positioned to clamp the ball race firmly.

The bracket |04 has a portion |26 extending at right angles thereto which supports a sleeve bearing |28 for one end of a shaft |30. The end of shaft |30 carries a bevel gear |32 which meshes with the bevel gear ||4 and ina similar manner to that already described there is a ball bearing assembly |34 clamped between the sleeve bearing and the bevel gear. A protective casing |36 is provided to cover the pair of gears. The

shaft |30 extends to driving apparatus later to be described. Thus as shaft |30 rotates it drives the threaded rod 98.

Referring now again to Figure 26, there may be seen a bracket |38 which is rigidly secured to the lower longitudinal T beam of the movable frame by bolt |40. This bracket has a. threaded opening |42 therethrough through which extends the threaded rod 98. Thus as the rod rotates and" is driven by shaft |30, the bracket will be forced along the rod and the frame will move. In a machine of this size a drive on one side is not sufflcient so a duplicate construction has been utilized on the back of the machine as shown in Figure 1 so that both sides are driven at the same time to prevent binding. The rear threaded rod 98 is driven by the other end of shaft |30 which extends across the end of the machine.

Secured in the end of the stationary frame nearest the model are two diagonal members |46 forming an X and to which are secured a pair of spaced substantially vertical support members |48, the lower edges of which are secured to the cross frame member I6. These members |48 are slightly bowed outwardly and carry bolted to their intermediate section an angle shelf bracket |50 by bolts |52 (see Figures 7 and 8).

Supported upon the shelf and upon the vertical supports is driving apparatus that is designed to drive the shaft |30 in either direction, depending upon the needs of the model for reproduction either by small increments or at a relatively fast pace. A source of power |54 is shown as being an electric motor having on its shaft a multiple groove pulley |56, the various grooves being of different diametral sizes. Mounted on the opposite end of the shelf is a worm gear reduction box |58, the driven shaft of which has a multiple diameter pulley |62. A belt |64 interconnects the two pulleys |62 and |56 by changing the relative pulley diameters; by moving the belt from one set of grooves to the other, the speed of drive may be varied.

the uppermost journal |10, as viewed in Figure 9, and has secured thereto an eccentric portion |16 which acts as a crank for a connecting rod arm |18. This arm |18 is pivotally connected to a pin which also supports a pivotal link |82, said pin being adjustably supported in an elliptical shaped housing |84 through which an adjusting screw |86 extends for moving the pin |80 up or down. The housing |84 is supported on the upper end of a member |88 which is pivotally supported on the shaft |30 in a manner which will later be described more in detail.

The driven shaft |66 of the gear reduction box |58 drives a stub shaft |68 in alignment therewith which is supported on journals |10 which It may thus be seen'that as the eccentric portion |16 rotates it will force the arm |18 back and forth which will cause the housing |84 to reciprocate through an arc the length of which depends upon the position of the adjusting screw |86 vertically. The adjusting screw |86 vextends through the upper threaded portion of the member |84 and has a squared end |90 projecting for adjustment purposes and also a locking concentric surrounding nut |92 for locking the screw in position once it has been properly adjusted. The links |82, which as beforementioned are freely pivoted on the pin |80, have their opposite ends pivotally connected to the long arm |94 of a bell crank lever which is pivoted on the frame of the shelf at a point |96. The short arm of the bell crank is connected to a short pair of links |98, the opposite end o-f which is connected to a plurality of spaced members 200 also rotatable on and rela- `.tive to the shaft 30.

Referring now more specifically to Figure 10, the mounting of the various parts upon the shaft 30 can be more clearly seen. The shaft |30 extends entirely across the end of the machine and adjacent its center portion carries a spacing block 202. Adjacent each end of the block 202 is rigidly mounted a toothed wheel 204 and 206, the teeth on wheel 204 being inclined in the opposite direction to those on the wheel 206, the purpose of the latter being to drive the shaft in opposite directions under differing conditions. 'Ihe hub portions of the two toothed wheels are extended toward each other and in combination with the block 202 form a bearing for the lower portion of the member |88 which forms the support for the reciprocating housing |84.` This housing may be relatively movable with respect to the toothed j wheels.

Mounted in turn on the outer surface of the member |88 where it encrcles the shaft are two spaced members 200 which as before mentioned are connected to the members |98 and are reciprocated up and down by movement of the housing |84 als driven from the eccentric. This causes the member 200 to rotate around the outer surface of the members encircling the shaft and carried by the opposite ends 208 of the members 200 from that connected to the members |96 are a pair of magnetic relays 2|0 the purpose of which will become obvious as the specification proceeds.

Mounted on the housing |84 a; yve the toothed wheels 204 and 206 are twi angular brackets 2|2 which support two more electromagnets 2|4 similar to 2|0. 'Enel `1` these magnets 2|0 and .2|4 has an electro .rgnet arma- :ure 2|6 in the form of a T, the long leg portion of which extends through the heart of the magnet and to the lower end of the T is connected an electrically insulated cross member 2 I8 carrying a pair of contacts 220 which are adapted to engage with spaced contacts 222 carried by the frame of the electromagnet. Mechanically connected to the head of the T armature is a short link 224 which is supported and spring biased to outer position by a leaf spring 226 supported on an arm 228 fastened by any suitable means to the outer casing of the electromagnet. On the link between its ends are a pair of pins 230 between which extenda short member 232 which is pivoted in the member 228 and spring biased to outer position by spring 234. It is thus evident that as the electromagnet is energized the lever 224 will be pulled in toward the magnet which will pull in the member 232 and rotate it about its pivot in the plate 228. Adjacent the opposite end of each of these members 232 is a pawl 236 which is pivoted on a cross shaft 238 and each pawl lies adjacent the surface of one of the toothed wheels 204 and 206. The portion of the pawl adjacent the lever is divided to form a groove 240 for the end of the member 232 which rocks therein and thereby its oscillation causes the pawl 236 associated therewith to engage or disengage the proximate tooth of the gear 204 or 206.

It will be noted that one relay 2|0 and 2|4 is associated with each of the toothed wheels 204 and 206, one being adjacent the top of the wheel and the other slightly to one side. The purpose of these pawls is to engage one or the other wheel to drive the same from the reciprocated motion of the housing |84 or the cross lever 200 to cause the shaft |30 to turn in the desired direction and drivethe movable box frame to feed the cutter with regard to the desired direction as controlled by the follower or tracing member so that if one set of pawls 236 is in engagement the shaft will be rotated in one direction, while if the other pair are in engagement the shaft |30 will be rotated in the opposite direction. -The purpose of the double pawl on the toothed drive is to increase the speed of operation, for when one of the pawls is in engagement the other will be: ratcheted to obtain a new hold for feeding and vice versa. This operation will be evident from theA linkage connection as shown. At the same time that the relays operate mechanically to cause the pawls to engage or disengage, they also close a setof contacts, the purpose of whichwill be described later with respect to the circuit diagram.

It will thus be seen that with this construction the shaft |30 may be rotated in either direction depending on the control. This drive of course is very slight and moves the movable frame only a very minute distance. If it is desired for some Ireason/ or other to move the movable frame rapidly from one position to another, a gear 242 isikeyed to the rotatable stub shaft |12 and drives through a chain 244, a gear 246 which is keyed to a sleeve 248, the sleeve being rotatable upon the shaft |30. The sleeve member drives one portion of a clutch 250 which when operated into engagement -withth'e other portion rigidly secured to the shaft |30 causes a direct drive from thestub shaft I 12 to the shaft |30. The clutch isoperated by a hand lever 252 and is normally kept in inoperative position by a suitable spring bias. This of course only operates the shaft |30 in one direction and a similar drive from the gear box |58 through gear 256, chain drive 258 and gear 260 keyed to a second sleeve 262 and rotatable on the shaft which also drives through a similar clutch 262 operated by a hand lever 264, will drive the shaft |30 in the opposite direction for rapid travel. The shaft |30 is further supported on brackets 266 which extend outwardly from the vertical base of the shelf and carry therein ball bearing assemblies 268 to insure free rotation of the shaft.

The apparatus so far described therefore discloses a stationary and a movable box frame and means for longitudinally moving the movable frame within the stationary to any desired extent. The drive for moving this movable frame is controlled by follower mechanism, designated generally at 210, which follower mechanism is adapted to trace the surface of a model such as 4. The apparatus for moving the tracing mechanism and by which the tracing mechanism controls the drive will now be described.

Across the left hand end of the 'movable frame as viewed in Figure 4, extends an upper and lower rod 212 and 214. These rods are sup ported at one end in suitable bearings 216 and are driven at the opposite end in a manner to be described from a source of energy 218 similar to the type of drive already specifically described for moving the frame longitudinally. This driving means 218 comprises a motor 280 driving a reducing worm gear box 282 and through the same type of drive as before described driving a longitudinally Vsupported shaft 284. This longiltudinal rod 284 drives the upper threaded rod 212 through suitable bevel gear connections, not shown, inside the elbow 286 which construction is substantially identical to that shown in Figure 6 for the drive of one of the lower horizontal threaded rods.

On the rod 212 (see Figure l1) near the driving end is secured a gear 288 withina housing 280 supported from the movable frame by a suitable bracket 292. This frame 290 also supports a lower bar assembly 294 for supporting the upper end of a vertical drive rody 296. Secured on the rod 286 is a worm wheel 298 which is adapted to mesh with the gear 288 and therefore receive its drive from the shaft 212. The lower end of the shaft is journalled in a suitable support 300 and has secured thereto .a worm wheel 302.

Also supported within the member 300 is one end of the lower threaded rod 214 which carries thereon a gear 304 which meshes with the worm wheel 302 in order to provide a drive from the vertical shaft 296 through to the horizontal threaded rod 214. Both the vertical shaft 286 and the horizontal rod 214 are provided with suitable ball bearing assemblies 306 for frictionless support. It will thus be evident that as the main drive shaft 284 rotates, that the two upper and lower threaded rods 212 and 214 will rotate therewith and in synchronism to drive the follower mechanism 'laterally across the movable carriage.

Extending across the upper portion of the movable carriage adjacent the upper threaded rod '212 is a T beam 308 which acts as a guide rail which is adapted to support at some point between its ends, and as shown substantially near the center, the follower mechanism 210. This vertical rod is d riven back and forth laterally across the end of the carriage by the two screws therein stub shafts 3|8 which carry adjacent thev upper end a ball bearing assembly 320, the outer race 322- of which acts as a roller. These two rollers are spaced apart a suiflcient'distance to allow the downwardly projecting portion of the T beam 308 to be supported therebetween and the outer rim of the member I3I4 is slotted as shown at 325 to admit this portion of the 1'- beam therethrough. 'I'he lower end of one of the stub shafts is provided with a nut 324 and the shafts are enlarged at the upper end as shown at 326 to provide for assembly within the boss 3I6. The nut 324 may beA tightened on the end of the shaft and still leave the shaft free to rotate within the boss. This is true of the right hand shaft which has an eccentric portion, the purpose of which will later be described. The left hand shaft merely has a cotter pin of suitable description for preventing its sliding from the boss.

As best shown in Figure 17, there are two pairs of these stub shaft roller assemblies, one on either side of the axis of the shaft 3l2 and within the collar 3I4. The stub shaft to the left, as viewed in either Figure 15 or Figure 17, has the roller mounted concentrically therewith but in the case of the right hand rollers vthese are mounted eccentrically with regard to the axis of ed action and of course this carries with it the lower assembly and one end of the shaft 312.

To the upper collar 3 I4 is also secured a similar drive member 348 which has an opening 350 therein also internally threaded and adapted to have the upper drive rod 212 passed therethrough in threaded relationship so that as this rod is rotated the member 348 and the upper end of the shaft 3I2 will be moved. It willthus be seen that with this construction and the synchronous drive for the two shafts 212 and 214 that hollow shaft 3I2 will be moved back and forth across the end of the movable carriage as the drive motor 280 is energized.

Secured to the opposite side of collar 332 from the drive shaft 214 is a bracket 352 by suitable screws 354, said bracket having a vertical cylindrical opening 356 therein which encloses and supports the lower reduced end 358 of a threaded face of the casing.

vertical rod 360 which is rotatable therein.

A housing 362 is also bolted to'the upper collar member 3I4 directly above the bracket 352 into which the upper end of the threaded rod 360 pro- Jects. 'I'he lower portion of the housing 362 'has a cylindrical bearing opening therein in which the upper end of. the rod is journalled and this sleeve portion is then provided with a larger aperture which encircles a bevel gear 364 which is held to the upper end of the rod by pin 366, a lower bearing assembly 368 being provided between the iower surface of the bevel gear and the inner sur- Passing through the upper portion of the casing over the upper end of the rod 360 is a horizontal the stub shaft as shown by the dotted lines.

'I'hese have secured thereto a projecting arm 328 to which is secured'one end of. a spring 330', the

' opposite end of which is anchored to the complementary shaft so that under spring tension the right hand roller is spring biased against the side of the -T beam to aord suiilcient pressure to clamp the T beam between the two rollers to provide smooth movement of the collar housing and its `associated shaft 3|2 on the T beam guide. The lower end of the hollow shaft 3|2 has secured thereto a similar collar 3'32 in which are suitably supported a pair of rollers 334 on opposite sides of the upwardly projecting portion of the T beam 310 whose construction is substantially the same as that utilized in the upper assembly for guiding the movable shaft 312 on the lower T beam guide.

Within the open end of the shaft 3I2 there is provided a pair of opposed spaced bosses 336 through which extends a pin 338 and on the pin between the bosses is rotatably supported a roller 340 which is adapted to ride upon the projecting end portion of the T beam and provides the vertical support for the shaft 3 I2. It is thus evident that these various rollerassemblies provide vertical and lateral non-friction support for moving the shaft 3I2 laterally. across the movable carriage. -f i l Secured to one side of the collar 332 inthe lower assembly is a member 342 having a circular opening 344 through which is internally threaded the rod 214. 'I'his member 342 is suitably secured to the collar by studs 346. It is thus evident that .if the threaded rod 214 is rotated that it will force the member 342 back and forth due to the threadshaft 310, one end of which is journalled in a bracket 312 also supported on the T beam 308. The opposite endof the rod extends to a gear box 314 (see Figure '2) which is identical with the bevel gear box |36 formerly described and best shown in Figure 6. There it receives a drive from a longitudinal shaft 316 which is driven by another d'riving unit 318 identical with those formerly described and consisting of a drive member 380 and a reducing gear box 382 which drives a shaft and then through a series of either chains 384 or ratchet drive 386 drives the shaft 316. rIv'he shaft 316 extends beyond the Adrive unit and meshes in a further bevel gear box 388 with a suitable drive for a transverse shaft 390 which lies parallel to the shaft 310 and rotates in synchronismtherewith. Thisshaft 310 (see Figure 16) as before mentioned passes through the upper portion of the housing 362 and carries thereon a bevel gear 392 rigidly secured to a circular member 384, the latter having secured to one portion thereof a key 336 slidable in a longitudinal slot 388 in the shaft 310, said slot 308 extending for the full length of the shaft.

Secured in the end of the housing 362 adjacent the circular member 384 is threaded a plug 400 which maintains the ball bearing assembly 402 firmly against the end of the-fmem-berdlll to allow the member 384 to rotate with relation to the housing and reduce the friction thereby. The opening in the opposite end of. the housing v362 through which the other portion of the` shaft 310 projects is also enlarged and carries a ball bearing assembly 404 which is held within the casing by a notch and a scew plate 408 held securely to the side of the hcusing. It will thus be evident that as the shaft 310 rotates, even though the housing is carried therealong, that lthe bevel gear 332 will be rotated at all times therewith and will drive the vertical threaded rod 380, the purpose of this drive being to raise and lower in a vertical plane the follower or tracing unit 210.

Secured to the top of the housing 362 there is bolted an arm 488 which is adapted to contact control members 410 of limit switches 4I2 located on opposite ends on top of the beam 308. These are provided so that the device will not operate in transverse travel beyond a certain point.

Vertically movable upon the hollow shaft 812 is a sleeve 4I4 formed of a cylindrical member split adjacent-.each end, said split having a bolt 416 extending therethrough as well as an adjust'- able screw 4|8 for purposes of adjustment so that the sleeve will iit snugly but not bind on the shaft. In the outer surface of the sleeve on one side is formed a keyway 420 and on the inner surface of the sleeve is formed a projected key 422 slidable in the keyway to keep the sleeve from rotating on the shaft. Extending to the rear is an extension 424 secured to the rear face oi' the sleeve by suitable bolts 426 and through the center of Which is provided a threaded opening 428 through which is adapted to pass the verticaal threaded rod 380. Since the extension 424 is integral with the sleeve any turning of the rod 360 will `force the member 424 and the sleeve up or down on the vertically stationary rod, depending on the direction of rotation. One end of the threaded opening 428 in the mem-ber 424 is counterbored as shown at 430 to larger diameter and a bushing member 432v internally threaded and having the same outside diameter as the remainder of the bore is adapted to fit therein. Two bolts 434 are provided which pass through the outer flange end of which supports photo-cell amplifiers 442.

Also supported from a bracket 444 carried by the forward end of. the hollow tube is a supporting arm 448 for the mechanical follower which in this case is composed of a horizontally slidable rod 448 having thereon a rotatable wheel 458, the wheel being adapted to travel over the surface of the model and the irregularities therein cause the rod 448 to move back and forth in the sleeve 452, the inner end of the rod lying adjacent one end of a bell crank lever 484 which is pivoted on a portion of the support 448. The other arm of the bell crank is adapted to force one end of a rod 458 longitudinally which action operates a shutter 458 which has an opening 488fas shown in Figure 21.

Also supported` by suitable means from the main sleeve 4I4 is a bracket 482 which supports a housing 484 in which are located a plurality of light sources 488 and in a spaced covered portion a plurality of photo-sensitive cells 488. Between the two shells which enclose these sources of light and photo-sensitive elements there is provided a short sleeve-like aperture 418 through which'light may pass from one source toits associated cell and rotatably supported adjacent this opening is the shutter` mechanism 488 previously mentioned. The shutter is so designed that when the rod 488 is moved in one direction from what may be termed neutral, an opening in the shutter allows I pair of relays on the longitudinal driving means so that the carriage will be moved. If, however, the follower takes such motion that the rod 456 is moved in the opposite direction, the other light aperture will be opened by the shutter and the opposite photo-electric cell will allow energization of the other two relays and move the movable frame in the opposite direction. Suitable cables 412 are of course provided for connecting the light source and the photo-cells to their amplifiers and the source of current.

As before mentioned, rotation of the shaft 316 causes synchronous rotation of. the shaft 398 spaced from and parallel to the shaft 310 and extending across to a movable frame at the opposite end. Also located at approximately the same location are two horizontal threaded shafts 414 and 418 which are identical to the two shafts 212 and 214 on the opposite end and whose function is to drive the upper and lower ends of a vertical shaft 418 which is mounted in identical fashion with the vertical shaft 812 on the first described end. 'I'he shafts 414 and 418 are driven from the same unit 218 which drives the shafts 212 and 214 through suitable shafting.

418' and' 504 so that as the vertical shaft 312 moves transversely across the frame the vertical shaft 418 will move in synchronism therewithand at exactly the same speed. Surrounding the vertical shaft 418 is a slidable sleeve member 480 which carries thereon a suitable supporting arm 482 which is adapted to support a cutter mechanism 484. 'I'he shaft 898 drives through an identical drive to a vertical threaded rod 485 which is exactly the same as the vertical feed rod 380 associated with the vertical shaft 8I2 whose function of course is to feed the cutter in a vertical plane.

Also provided on the movable frame are suitable clamping means 488 for supporting a workpiece 488 adjacent the cutter so that that may be engaged and theV same surface cut in the work-piece as that over which the follower travels on the model. It is of course evident that if the cutter is turned one way so that its travel is identical with that of the follower, that the same type surface will be cut such as shown by dotted line 488, but if the cutter is turned around to a position opposite to that of the follower member, a complementary surface such as that shown in dotted line 492 will result. It is thus evident that either the same or' complementary surface may be reproduced by this machine.

vAs shown in this construction,the follower head is xed in a horizontal plane and is adapted to travel transversely across the side of the model and will reproduce the surface thus engaged, the control head in this case operating the drive units |84l which controls vlongitudinal movement of the movable frame. If it is desired to scan the model vertically, the drive 318 will be utilized to give a constant speed feed in a vertical plane andthe'control head will operate the same drive 184 to follow the horizontal displacement.

Briefly referring to the connections between the control head and the longitudinal drive member to which it is attached, each of the control photocells is adapted to control one pair of relays on one of the drive ratchets for driving the machine in one direction. Thus if one photo-cell is energized it will energize a pair of electromagnets 218 and 2| 4 which will catch the teeth on one of the drive wheels and turn the shaft 38 in one direction. If the movable frame has moved far enough so that the follower wheel 488 no longer contacts the surface, the shutter will 

